


What's Past is Prologue

by Gote_Herder



Series: Ashes and Dust [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Childhood to Adulthood, Dreemurr Siblings, Female Chara (Undertale), Female Frisk (Undertale), Fluff, Growing Up, Minor Angst, Mystery, Prologue, Slice of Life, Vignettes, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:50:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 19,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26590165
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gote_Herder/pseuds/Gote_Herder
Summary: "Long ago, two races ruled over Earth: Humans and Monsters.One day, a conflict brought the two races to the brink of all-out war.Only through the actions of a brave few was catastrophe narrowly averted.A tenuous peace was established and humans and monsters have lived apart ever since.Many years later...The heir to the monster kingdom of Ebott, Prince Asriel, lives comfortably in the underground with his two adopted siblings, Frisk and Chara.Everything is fine.Until now. "
Relationships: Asgore Dreemurr/Toriel, Chara & Asriel Dreemurr & Frisk
Series: Ashes and Dust [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1934263
Comments: 7
Kudos: 14





	1. Innocence

Asriel collapsed to both knees in a bed of golden flowers. His body was pierced by dozens of cruel barbs that dug into his flesh. Horrible, angry screams assaulted him from every side. Each labored breath was agony; even lifting his head to look at the buildings around him was painful. Yet somehow his eyes found their way toward the mountain that loomed in the distance, as if drawn by an irresistible force.

Why was he here? Why hadn’t he just stayed in the mountain? It had always been safe there. No pain, no grief, just the people he loved, and who loved him back. Who were they, again? He only remembered Chara, and she was gone now; taken by the fate she carved for them both.

Mount Ebott, his home, shifted and changed before his eyes. Stone warped into flesh and perverse organs. Foothills and roads became veins that pulsed in rhythm with a maddening, beating heart.

The weight of the ancient’s will crashed against his soul like a tidal wave against weak, crumbling rock. Asriel cried out in agony as an unknowable pain tore through him, again and again and again. The torment was ceaseless; it shifted like the tides, offering tantalizing moments of relief only to snatch them away when he let down his guard. He couldn’t remember anything. Family, friends… all seemed like hazey daydreams in that realm of madness. That life was someone else’s. He had always been here, with it; and to it, he would return.

Asriel Dreemur was dead. If he accepted that fact, it would end. The pain would stop. He would be free. He could have Chara back again.

A loud, distant voice cut through the torture that drowned his senses. It urged him to go on, promising in an angry, sorrowful cry that he’d be sore for weeks if he dared to give in.

He cracked open his maw, gasping for breath as the thorns dug ever deeper into his flesh. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he grit his teeth and forced himself up on one knee.

She wouldn’t have bowed before this thing. Asriel was certain that somewhere, somehow, She was watching him. He couldn’t give in. Wouldn’t give in. Not after all he’d been through.

He rose to his feet; a simple but powerful act of defiance against the being that ruled this place. The thing assaulted him again with a fury born of indignation at his obstinacy, forcing him back to his knees. It bellowed in a thousand loud whispers, trying to drown out her voice. Over and over again it hissed its maddening mantra.

**_Return to us!_ **

Asriel lifted his head. A jet black vine erupted out of the ground before him, covered in golden flowers and tipped with a thorn shaped like an arrowhead. It coiled back and then sprung towards him like a viper. He shut his eyes and raised his arms to shield his face, bracing himself for the imminent feeling of...

...A tiny fist bonking him on the head, right in between the nubs where his horns were growing in. Asriel’s eyes shot open.

“Owwww!” He whined, rubbing his head with one paw. It hadn't really hurt, but he wanted maximum sympathy from his sisters.

“Sorry, Azzy!”

Asriel looked up from the living room rug and over at Frisk, who was sitting beside him. She was six years old, one younger than him, but the way she “bullied” him made her seem older sometimes.

“I just needed to know if you were still paying attention.” She said. “I’m all ready to start.”

He really was excited to watch his little sister’s story play out, but the white floral pattern on the velvet rug had entranced him while waiting for her to set it up.

“I was trying to guess what’s gonna happen next.” Asriel explained. “I’ve been waiting for a week to see what happens to the knight and I really hope she gets a happy ending…”

“Then pay attention if you’re so interested, silly!”

Clack!

The clashing of two plastic swords heralded the beginning of the duel between Frisk’s two action figures, “Dame Knight” and “Samurai San”. Asriel lay on his belly and watched the performance with his head propped in both paws, his blue eyes wide and enraptured. The little adventures Frisk made up never failed to capture his imagination.

His eyes grew wider when Frisk made the samurai strike the knight’s leg with his foot. The “blow” nearly brought the knight down, but Frisk kept it upright and had it parry the samurai’s katana with its sword.

Chara, meanwhile, had her nose in a voluminous tome titled “The Princess” that was too complicated for Asriel and not enough of a page turner for Frisk. Despite her apparent lack of interest, the occasional snarky riff from Chara assured Frisk and Asriel that she was still listening and she even paid the toys a brief glance at times.

Frisk made the blades of the two action figures clash at speeds that dizzied Asriel, complete with grunting noises for each combatant. He was desperately rooting for the knight now, and prayed that Frisk wouldn’t let him down.

Most would not assume that Asriel’s playmates were also family. For starters, they were both humans. Each was fair-skinned with a mop of short brown hair atop their heads. Chara, the smaller and fairer of the two, had distinct rosy cheeks accentuating her near perpetual smile, while Frisk had an inscrutable squint that belied her friendly disposition. Asriel, on the other hand, was a four foot tall boss monster with white fur covering his body, a short snout, large goat-like ears, a fluffy stub of a tail, and a pair of tiny nubs on the top of his head where his horns were growing in.

In a stunning move, Frisk slammed the broadsword of her knight figure into the samurai figure’s katana, sending it flying out of the toy’s hand and into the thick living room rug blade-first.

“Impossible!” Frisk yelled in her vaguely-accented Samurai impression. “You beat me again!”

She made the samurai kneel down before the knight as best she could with its stiff plastic joints.

“...and now you must strike me down.” She continued in the same exaggerated tone.

It was the knight’s turn to speak. Asriel waited with bated breath.

Frisk put on a regal, feminine voice like that of a queen. “No, I will not. You were strong and brave and we both fight demons, so let’s be friends instead.”

“Seriously?” Chara interrupted, looking up from her book. “They were just trying to kill each other a minute ago and now the knight’s trying to be his friend? That’s silly.”

“Nuh uh!” Frisk objected, sounding like herself at last. “The samurai’s not a bad guy, he just wanted to be the best. The knight doesn’t have to kill him, so why should she?”

“Right, sure.” Sighed Chara. “And then as they’re walking off into the sunset he stabs her in the back!”

Frisk groaned in exasperation. “No, Charaaaa... This isn’t one of your stories....”

Hoping to distract his sisters from arguing, Asriel voiced one of the random, unrelated questions that had popped into his head during Frisk’s story:

“I agree, Frisk, but how do you know the knight’s a girl?” He tapped the helmeted action figure with one fluffy finger. “I don’t remember any girl knights in the old storybooks…”

“You don’t know she isn’t!” Frisk replied, the indignation clear in her voice. “And besides, there was that one story about a girl who pretended to be a boy so she could join the army.”

“Children!” Called their mother from an adjacent room. “I know you all are having fun but I need to talk to you.”

Their mother’s voice, kind but firm, made the three siblings focus on the doorway behind them.

Suffice it to say, Chara and Frisk were not relatives by blood. Toriel, Asriel’s mother and queen of the underground, stood at an imposing seven feet tall and had the same sort of fur as her son. Her horns were barely any longer than his, essentially nubs compared to the fully grown horns that a male of her species would possess, but they complemented her comforting and maternal figure. She was as loving as any of the children could want from a mother, even if her concern for their well being was stifling during their more adventurous moods.

“What is it, mom?” Asriel asked, fixing his bright blue eyes on her with a burning curiosity. Her tone made it clear that something important was going on but that nobody was in trouble, which was good because it meant she hadn't yet noticed the missing chocolates he had helped Chara stash under her bed.

“We are going to have a visitor soon. She… might be staying with us for a while.”

“Are we adopting another human?” Frisk asked with a smile. “Poor Azzy’s going to have more siblings than he can count on his paws.”

“She will just be our guest for a while. Of course, if she asks to stay with us your father and I are hardly going to say no. And she isn’t a human, she’s a monster like your brother.”

Asriel was just about jumping in his seat. Meeting new people was always fun, despite how difficult or awkward introductions could be for him.

“What’s her name? And what’s she like?”

“Slow down, Azzy,” Said Chara with her ever-present stoicness. “You’ll get hiccups.”

“You shall find all of that out by talking to her, my child. But she has been through difficult times recently and might be a bit shy. Just do not pry and try to give her space if she wants to be alone, understood?”

“When’s she getting here?” Asked Chara.

“I do not know for sure. Your father is still working some things out but he will bring her home as soon as he is able. It might be after you have all gone to bed but I thought I should let you all know nonetheless.”

“Thanks, mom! I can’t wait to meet her!” Asriel’s tail wagged in excitement as their mother returned to the kitchen to finish dinner preparations.

“She might not even be staying here longer than a day.” Chara remarked once their mother was out of hearing range. “I wouldn’t get your hopes up.”

“No harm in a little hope.” Frisk replied with cheer. “Azzy’s gonna be excited no matter what you say.”

She wasn’t wrong. Asriel wasn’t bored of his sisters, but he already found himself interested in this new person, especially with the mystery behind her reasons for staying with them.

“I mean… It’s all really neat sounding.” He murmured.

“I’m curious too.” Said Chara. “Just feel like we might not get answers.”

“What answers are those?” Asked Frisk.

Being the one with the most questions on his mind, Asriel answered first. “Why she’s coming to live with us I guess. That and all the other stuff you gotta know about a friend.”

The three siblings went on to discuss the newcomer at length. They speculated about who she was, what she’d be like, as well as idle chatter about menial things such as how it would be nice to have a use for that fourth controller on the game console. Chara seemed the least curious about their new roommate but was far from disinterested, even if her concerns were more about whether a fourth kid in the household would cut into her share of desserts.

Dinner and the hours after it passed, and their father still hadn’t returned. Baths were being drawn before they knew it, marking the beginning of their bedtime routine. It seemed as if they would have to wait until the next day to meet the mysterious stranger.

Soon, Asriel forgot his anxiety about making a good first impression as it came to the time for his nightly duties as a brother. Both Frisk and Chara possessed an acute fear of the dark that, while not totally out of the ordinary at their ages, made it impossible for them to sleep without third-party assistance. Their mother was weary at this hour, so Asriel took it upon himself to ensure his siblings got a good night’s rest by staying in their room and reading to them until they fell asleep.

According to his sisters, Asriel’s voice had a soothing quality to it which distracted them from their fears with fictional worlds and peoples from their books. Every day he sought, with all the vim and vigor a child his age could, new stories to entertain his beloved sisters with; from tales of brave knights vanquishing evil monsters to witty detectives outsmarting vicious crooks, Asriel read them all. Incidentally, this made him rather good at reading for someone his age.

When their eyes drifted shut, Asriel would turn off the lamp he used to read by and return to his room to get some sleep himself. All the reading he did for his sisters tired him out, and that night was no different. His eyes shut moments after his head hit the pillow.

It would have been a peaceful sleep, but mere hours later he returned to the waking world, called by Chara’s voice.

“Azzy, wake up!”

The loud whisper was accompanied by a pair of small human hands shaking Asriel awake. He opened his eyes and, after a few moments spent adjusting to the dark, saw Frisk and Chara standing by his bedside.

“W-what is it?” He grumbled as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He couldn’t remember the last time they had woken him up like this, so he figured it must be important.

“The new girl’s here.” Whispered Frisk. “In the spare room next to ours.”

“Then shouldn’t she be sleeping?”

“She’s not.” Said Chara. “She’s making a lot of noise.”

“Oookayyy… Should we go get mom and dad?”

“Are you kidding?” Frisk scoffed. “Remember what happened last time we woke mom up at this hour? You gotta quiet her down!”

Asriel got out of bed with no small amount of trepidation. If he had rehearsed what he was going to say to the new person he didn’t remember.

“B-but I-”

“No buts.” Chara interrupted. “You’ll do fine, Azzy. Now come along.”

With a heavy sigh, Asriel followed his sisters out of his bedroom and over to the door adjacent to his sisters’ room. Loud footsteps and the sound of something heavy crashing to the floor came from inside, making Asriel wonder how their parents hadn't woken up yet.

“You hear our problem.” Mused Chara. “Go in there and quiet her down.”

“How?”

Chara shrugged. “I dunno. Talk, beg, read to her like you read to us if you need to. Whatever gets her to go to bed.”

“If you need help, just give me a call once it’s safe.” Frisk said.

“That doesn’t make me feel any better…”

“Oh, just do it, Azzy!” Chara hissed. She opened the door just enough to shove Asriel inside and before he knew what was happening, Chara had shut it behind him.

The room’s lights were on, allowing Asriel a clear view of his surroundings. A bureau sat against the left wall with all its drawers lying scattered about the floor. Next to the bureau was a wide open door leading to a small empty closet. The large, floral patterned rug in the center of the room was rolled up, revealing that some of the floorboards had been pulled up before being clumsily replaced.

More striking than the room’s chaotic state was the monster who stood in front of the bed, holding one end up with a single hand and peering beneath. The stranger stood at an impressive height for a young monster, four feet and eight inches compared to Asriel’s four foot one. She wore a simple black t-shirt and blue jeans and had a head of fiery red hair tied in a ponytail. In lieu of skin or fur the young girl possessed blue scales like those of a fish and had a pair of gills on her neck as well as fins where her ears would be.

After a few moments of standing there with a stunned expression, Asriel mustered up the nerve to speak.

“Howdy!” Asriel squeaked, sounding more nervous than he intended to.

The girl’s head snapped towards him, fixing her intense yellow eyes on his blue ones. Her appraising stare gave him a look at the crooked, tiny twin fangs that were visible even with her mouth closed.

“I-I’m Asriel.” He stammered. “What’s your name?”

She stared at him in silence for a few moments, which was more than enough to make him lose his nerve and break eye contact before she spoke. Her voice was surprisingly deep and scratchy for a girl.

“Undyne.” She released the bed and let it drop back to the floor with a loud crash. “My name’s Undyne.”

Asriel was heartened by the fact that she was willing to share her name with him. It was a good first start and, he hoped, a sign that things would only get better from there.

“Nice to meet you, Undyne!” He said, putting on his best smile. “Is there something wrong with your room? I’m sure I could get my dad to find you a new one or get rid of any problems. He’s the king, so he can fix anything!”

“It’s fine. I was just checking it.”

“Checking it for what?”

“Nothing.”

Asriel’s smile dropped despite his best efforts.

“Oh. Well, as long as you like the room I guess it’s okay. Mom will probably want you to clean it up though. I can help with that-”

“Don’t. I can clean up my own messes.”

“But what if I want to?”

“I can do it myself! I don’t need help.”

“Well, If you change your mind-”

“I won’t.”

Her insistent tone made Asriel struggle to find more words. She seemed like a good person but he could tell something was bothering her, probably the stuff his mother had told him not to pry about. Nevertheless, he wanted to know. Chara was bothered by an awful lot of things when she had first arrived. Frisk too. In the end they had both just needed his support and love. Maybe it would work here too.

“So… how old are you?” He asked.

“Ten.” Undyne answered.

“Years or months?”

Undyne sighed in exasperation. “Days, obviously.”

“Golly, you’re really tall for being a baby.”

The only thing Asriel’s comment earned from Undyne was an annoyed groan.

“I’m sorry for the noise. I’ll go to bed now.”

“Are you gonna be able to? You seem kind of worried about something.”

“Sleeping isn’t hard, dummy!” Undyne growled, sounding indignant at his suggestion. “I’ll just close my eyes and stop being awake.”

“It’s not that easy for my sisters. Maybe I could help with that though! They say it’s a lot easier to sleep when I read to them, so-”

“I said I was going to bed!” Undyne snapped, the intensity of her voice making Asriel flinch. “Just leave me alone already, will you?”

“Sorry, sorry!” He yelped. “I’ll go now. H-have a good night!”

Undyne regarded him with a cold stare as he backed towards the door. Clearly she wanted to be left alone, but Asriel couldn’t for the life of him understand why. Most people had a reason for wanting to be by themselves. With Chara it was usually because she was sad, and even then Asriel’s presence had always helped. Whatever Undyne’s problem was, he’d have to find out later.

He made a hasty exit, breathing a sigh of relief as the door closed behind him.

“Well, that sounded fun.” Chara quipped.

“She’s probably tired.” Frisk mused. “Don’t take it too hard, Azzy. We'll see how she is in the morning.”

“R-right…” Asriel mumbled, still trying to figure out if he had said something wrong or offensive during his brief exchange with Undyne. “So, will you two need my help again or…”

“We’ll be fine.” Frisk said with a smile. “You should get back to bed. Chara and I can manage.”

Chara nodded. “Yeah. We woke you up so it’s only fair we let you get back to sleep now.”

Asriel bade his siblings goodnight and retreated to the comfort of his room. There he found himself replaying his brief chat with Undyne over and over again in his mind as he tried to sleep. For the life of him, he could not figure out what he might have been able to do better, or what he would do in the morning. Nevertheless, his curiosity remained along with his desire to ease whatever pain she was going through. For now though, all he could do was sleep.

He awoke once more, almost before he knew it. Getting out from his comfortable nest of blankets was hard; being roused in the middle of the night had left him groggy and disoriented. Still, he had important things to do today, so he dragged himself out of bed and swapped his pajamas out for a green striped shirt and comfortable sweatpants before heading out into the hall.

The door to his sister’s room was wide open; not unusual considering they always woke up before he did. The tantalizing smell of breakfast drew him to the stairs and as he descended he began to hear unintelligible snippets of conversation from the kitchen. It sounded like Frisk was blathering to someone with their parents chiming in at times. It wasn’t until he was nearly at the bottom that Asriel could tell Frisk was talking to Undyne.

He couldn’t make out what they were saying, but judging by the tones of their voices they were getting along quite well. This was unsurprising; Frisk could be friends with anyone in the whole world if she put her mind to it. Hopefully she could smooth out whatever mistake Asriel had made when speaking with Undyne last night, and then he could be her friend too. She seemed like she needed one or two, maybe even three or four.

The idle chatter ceased when Asriel strode into the kitchen with a yawn. His parents and sisters were seated at the round table that took up a portion of the spacious kitchen, already well into breakfast. Undyne was standing by the door to the living room with a backpack slung over her shoulder and an impatient look on her face.

Asriel’s parents and Frisk gave him a warm good morning, while Chara gave him a nod of acknowledgement that Asriel had come to understand was her version of a greeting.

“Good morning!” Asriel replied with gusto as he waved to Undyne.

Much to his dismay, she only replied with a gruff, “Morning.”

He decided not to let this dissuade him from trying to talk to her. She was probably just sleepy.

“W-What’s the backpack for?”

Immediately, she looked at the floor and shuffled awkwardly in place. A moment of silence passed before Toriel spoke up.

“She will not be staying here, my child. Sir Gerson is on his way to come pick her up even as we speak.”

The news stung, and Asriel started to wonder just how badly he had messed up during their first conversation.

“But why?” He bleated.

“Her reasons are her own.” Asgore stated in a stern but comforting manner. “We shall respect them and wish her the best.”

“Besides,” Frisk interjected. “It’s not as if we won't see her again. She’ll still be living in the underground, just not with us. She and I already figured how we’ll be keeping in touch and where and when we’ll meet to play, so everything’s fine!”

Asriel was still confused by her departure, but Frisk’s words put him somewhat at ease. “O-Okay… Well, it was great to meet you, Undyne! I hope we’ll see each other again soon!”

Still Undyne couldn’t seem to look him in the eyes, nor could she muster a response. Thankfully, before the silence became awkward, there was a loud knocking at the door in the living room.

“I’ll get it!” Asriel offered, running past Undyne and getting his paw on the doorknob before anyone else could rise from the table.

Gerson, the strongest monster in the underground, stood behind the door. He was a two-legged, turtle-like creature who was only half as tall as Asriel’s father. His height did nothing to diminish his stature though, and everyone knew him as a brave and noble hero: “The Hammer of Justice.” Though, now that Asriel thought about it, he really wasn’t sure exactly what sort of adventures had earned Gerson his title.

“Heya, sonny!” Gerson exclaimed with a smile upon seeing Asriel. “Your sisters haven’t given you any grey fur yet, I see!”

“Nope! They’re still just as great as ever, Mister Gerson!”

“Welp, you aren’t gettin’ another from the sounds of it. Now where’s my young charge?”

Undyne walked over to the door with Asgore and Frisk close behind her. The king’s ever-present smile widened upon seeing Gerson, an old friend of his.

“Howdy, old boy.” Asgore said with a friendly wave. “Got yourself a good night’s rest before dropping by, I hope.”

“Enough to handle the little tyke there.” Gerson cocked his head in Undyne’s direction. “‘Aven’t had a wee lad or lass of my own, so this’ll be an adventure of a new kind for me.”  
Undyne comically straightened her posture as if standing at attention and cleared her throat.

“I’m not getting adopted! I’m going to be your squire.”

Her words were spoken with startling certainty for one her age. Even Gerson seemed taken aback.

“Ah… well hows about we talk about that once I’ve got ye all settled in, eh? I don’t think ye know what yer askin’ for, lassie.”

“Believe me, sir. I know EXACTLY what I’m asking for.”

Asriel looked between his father, Undyne, Frisk, and Gerson. The two adults seemed rather uncomfortable but Frisk was as cheery-looking as ever.

“She can do it, Mister Gerson!” Chirped Frisk. “I might only have gotten to talk with her for a few hours this morning, but I think that someday she’ll be a great hero like you!”

Asriel caught Undyne giving Frisk a faint but appreciative smile, one which vanished when she noticed him looking.

“Gerson will do as he thinks is best.” Said Asgore. “For both her and the realm.”

“Aye, but I need to get to know the lass first. Are ya ready to go?”

Undyne nodded and walked past Asriel to Gerson’s side as Toriel left the kitchen to join the group.

“Thank you.” Undyne said to the Dreemurr family. “If there’s ever anything I can do to pay you back…”

“Don’t worry about it.” Frisk replied. “You’re our friend now!”

Asriel smiled despite how disappointed he was by Undyne’s departure.

“And we’re still here for you if you need us!” He told Undyne. “Like good friends should be!”

Again she tried and failed to look him in the eye.

“T-Thanks. I… guess I’ll see you around.”

“We will see you again.” Asgore assured her. “It was a pleasure for all of us to make your acquaintance, and we all look forward to being your friends in the years to come.”

Undyne nodded and departed with Gerson, respectfully closing the door behind her. The conversation had put hundreds of questions in Asriel’s young mind, and he chose to voice the biggest of them all as he sat down for breakfast.

“Dad, what does being Gerson’s squire actually mean?”

Immediately, his parents looked troubled, more so than Asriel had ever seen them.

“Well…” His mother began hesitantly. “That is a very complicated question, my child. Perhaps we will speak of it when you are older.”

Asgore nodded in assent. “She’s right, son. You will come to understand in time.”


	2. Stars and Shadows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few months after the first chapter of our story, the royal siblings and Undyne explore waterfall together.

The soft grass of Waterfall was like a carpet beneath Frisk’s feet, almost making her forget that she was living underground. To her left was a cliff wall of dark rock dotted by bioluminescent plants and bright crystals that lit the way through the caverns. On the right was a vast lake filled with water that glowed brighter than the stones or flora. Lilypads floated on its surface and the shore was lined with sparse patches of glowing ferns.

On the other side of the lake, a bright waterfall cascaded down a rock face and fed the pool with magical water. What made it “magical” aside from its color, Frisk wasn’t sure of. She wasn’t particularly keen on finding out either; for all she knew, it would turn her into a goat or something if she went for a swim in it. That wouldn’t be very cool, especially when summer rolled around. 

She was about to reflect further on the magical nature of the environment when Asriel’s voice roused her from her reverie. 

“Golly, Frisk, are you sure it’s safe to go this far off the path?”

  
He sounded worried despite his excitement at the prospect of their little trip through Waterfall. This was understandable since the Underground was vast and one could easily get lost if they strayed from the single road that ran through the inhabited regions. Frisk wasn’t worried though. Undyne stood by her side as they walked and Chara was a meter behind them, right beside her brother. With those two along, nothing could give them trouble. 

Chara’s memory was impeccable and she had studied the potential natural dangers of Waterfall extensively. Frisk had only known Undyne for a month now, but she was certain that the fish-monster was more than capable of protecting them from anything unexpected. 

“We’ll be fine!” Chirped Frisk. “Chara will remember the way.”

“I mean… of course she will… I-It’s just that we don’t know what’s out here.”

Undyne looked back and shot Asriel with an accusing glare.

“That’s why Frisk brought us out here, punk! What are ya, too chicken to explore?”

“N-no! I’m just…”

Undyne scoffed. “Oh right, You’re not scared, you’re terrified of going anywhere without mommy or daddy.”

Frisk looked behind her just in time to see Asriel huff as only a child with wounded pride could and puff out his chest. The sight made Frisk giggle, but Asriel was too occupied to notice. 

“Am not!” He insisted. “I’m the bravest one here! In fact I’m so brave that I keep my head outside the covers at night!” 

Undyne chortled and turned her attention back to the path ahead of them. Frisk was about to do the same, but couldn’t resist teasing Asriel one more time. 

“But Azzy,” She said. “Isn’t that just to look at your glow in the dark stars?”

“T-that’s just a bonus!”

At last Chara decided to speak up.

“Asriel’s very, very brave. If he weren’t, I wouldn’t have nearly as much chocolate in… er, at my disposal.”

Undyne snorted at that remark, though Frisk couldn’t tell how she did it with gills. 

“Suuure. Brave little chocolate thief. I’d tell your dad if I thought it would do any good.”

“But you know it won’t.” Replied Chara with just a hint of smugness. “Azzy, being the great brother he is, will take the fall for me and mom and dad will just give his desserts to me and Frisk for the next week or so. I win either way.”

“Azzy doesn’t win though.” Said Frisk. “You know it makes him cry when mom and dad scold him for even the slightest thing.”

Chara cleared her throat indignantly. “Need I remind you that he and I cut you a share of the chocolate too? You’re not exactly innocent either.”

This much was true. Asriel’s padded feet made him well suited to sneaking out in the middle of the night to raid the pantry for chocolates; and though Frisk tried to discourage him and Chara from their criminal ways, she wasn’t about to say no to a cut of the haul. 

Undyne turned her accusing gaze at Frisk.

“Are you taking chocolate bribes?” She asked. “I’ll never get why you love those so much. They make your teeth all gross and sticky!”

“They taste good… really good… and they’re not bribes! Just… er… gifts.”

Undyne huffed in disbelief at the depths of Frisk’s moral depravity. “If I were you, I’d turn myself in. It’s only the right thing to do.” 

“Sometimes I wanna…” Mumbled Frisk.

“No you don’t.” Said Chara. “Because that gets us both in trouble. It’s logically better if it’s only Azzy taking the blame. That’s half as many people getting blamed!”

“Mom and dad are fair. They wouldn’t punish you any worse than they would Azzy.”

“It’s all relative. No desserts for a week is MUCH worse for me than it is for him.”

Undyne mumbled “No justice for royal brats, I guess.” Under her breath before letting the matter drop. Then in a much more audible tone she asked Frisk, “Do you know where we’re going?”

“Of course I do! It’s nowhere in particular. Just anyplace interesting.”

Frisk was almost sure she had told Undyne the particulars before they set off, but it didn’t hurt to explain again. The Underground had been one great big mystery to Frisk ever since the Dreemurrs adopted her. In fact, she found it more interesting than the surface. Beyond the friendly and peaceable populace, there were a myriad of astounding natural formations not far from the beaten path. Yet in her three years here, Frisk had only scratched the surface of what the Underground had to offer. 

There were miles upon miles of caverns that had been mapped but never settled. These ran deep beneath the mountain; far, far deeper than any monster could say. Today, Frisk had gathered her siblings and very best friend together to go explore Waterfall together, hoping to find something amazing. 

“Perfect!” Undyne exclaimed with a wide, toothy smile. “Guided tours are boring anyway! Into the unknown we go! If it complains I’ll just punch it in the face!”

Frisk only just stopped herself from asking if Undyne had ever had a guided tour before. Such a question would, the human assumed, make her think of what she’d lost. No point bringing down the mood of their little expedition. 

“Whaddya think we’ll find?” asked Asriel. 

Chara was quick to speak before either Frisk or Undyne could reply. “They have no idea. A better question is, what do we hope to find?” 

Asriel jumped up and down in excitement as he walked, almost tripping. 

“Ooh, Ooh! I wanna find a butterscotch tree so we can bring one home! Then we could have butterscotch whenever we wanted!”

Frisk couldn’t see it, but she was certain Asriel’s tail was wagging. 

“Why… why do you think it grows on trees?” Chara asked, the exasperation clear in her voice. 

“Because it’s gotta come from somewhere! Chocolate comes from trees too so why not butterscotch?”

“You’re… ergh. You’re not totally wrong about chocolate there, but it’s not as simple as that.”

“Nuh uh, it is! I’m the prince so I get to decide these kinds of things.”

“Don’t be stupid!” Barked Undyne. “Everyone knows butterscotch comes from things in the ground like carrots. When they’re dug up they’re like hard candy so they get sent to a factory to be melted down.” 

“Ooohhhh! So is that what Hotland’s good for?”

“Yup!” Undyne said with pride, revelling in her intellectual superiority. “We use all that lava to melt stuff down. Like raw butterscotch, chocolate, and fish!”

“Why fish?” 

“To make fish oil of course!”

Frisk smiled at the exchange as they kept walking. She knew better of course, but didn’t have the heart to put a stop to their fun. Chara knew better too, but she seemed too defeated to educate anyone. Undyne and Asriel continued to bicker about the nature of sweets as the group walked around the edge of the lake, providing Frisk with endless amusement.

They sounded like good friends for a while, and it made Frisk more disappointed that Undyne couldn’t open up to Asriel like she had to her. Perhaps when he was older they would be close like Frisk hoped, but that day was yet far off. 

Now Frisk could see her destination on the other side of the lake: a passage in the rock wall that was lit by Waterfall’s shining flora and radiant stones. This was the beginning of unknown territory for the assembled children, and Frisk’s heart hammered with excitement as they approached it. 

Upon reaching the opposite shore they all sat down at the edge of the water to rest their weary feet. 

“Why are we stopping?” Grumbled Undyne. “I wanna get to the exploring already!”

“We can’t all be as tough as our knight in shining armor.” Replied Frisk. “Walking for hours isn’t normal for us.”

“R-right!” Undyne stammered, caught off guard by Frisk’s praise. “A knight has to take care of her companions after all.”

Undyne wasn’t in any armor at the moment, but with a little magic she quickly corrected that. Her plain clothes turned to metal and their shape changed until she resembled a miniature knight from Frisk’s favorite fairy tales. She left her head uncovered, allowing Frisk to see the proud and appreciative smile that came over her. 

“Already learning from Gerson, huh?” Asked Frisk. “I think you’ll really impress him with an attitude like that.”

Her praise made Undyne’s smile become more eager. 

“You think he’ll agree to teach me once he hears about our trip?”

“He might. I know I’ll tell him about how brave you were and how you kept watch for scary things.”

At the mention of scary things, Asriel looked concerned. “Golly, are there really scary things down here, Frisk? I didn’t know about that when we left…”

“It’ll be fine.” Chara assured him. “Dad and Gerson make sure that the Underground is a perfectly safe place. Well, as long as we don’t do anything stupid.” 

“Good thing we’re all very smart!” Asriel said with a nod, his fears quelled by Chara’s words. 

Undyne crossed her arms and muttered. “Some of us, anyway.” 

Frisk shot her a look that said “please be nice” but Asriel didn’t seem to have heard her. His ears clearly weren’t as useful as their size would suggest.

They sat on the shores of the lake for a while longer, chatting and appreciating the beauty of the water. After a while though, Undyne began to look suspiciously at the lake and stood up.

“I’m gonna see if anything’s in there.” She declared. 

“Why do you think there might be?” Frisk asked. 

Undyne crouched down and whispered the answer to her. “You know why. They could be anywhere.” 

With that she leapt into the water with the grace of a dolphin, splashing Frisk with droplets as she vanished beneath the surface. 

Asriel jumped to his feet, alarmed by her sudden disappearance. 

“I-is she gonna be okay?” He asked. “And why did she say there might be something in there?”

Frisk shrugged. “Just felt like swimming. She’ll be back. Probably looking for a fish to snack on.”

“B-but people can’t breathe underwater!” 

Chara gently elbowed him in the side to get his attention. “She has gills. Unlike the rest of us, she can breathe underwater.”

Asriel sighed in relief and sat back down. “Oh, I was afraid there for a minute.”

They continued resting for a while, watching the still surface of the water as they waited for Undyne to return. When she finally resurfaced she seemed no worse for the wear. Her “armor” was wet, but that wasn’t a problem since it was magic. She didn’t seem to care about her now-sopping ponytail either. 

“All clear.” Undyne said. “Nothing down there, and it’s not very deep anyway.”

“Then I’m ready to go if everyone else is.” Replied Frisk. 

Asriel and Chara nodded their assent and rose to their feet. Frisk and Undyne once again led the way as they continued towards the tunnel. They had barely taken a few steps when they began to hear a muffled crunching sound. The sudden noise must have startled Undyne, for she turned around quicker than Frisk could blink.

“What was that?” Growled Undyne. “It sounded… kinda like footsteps over dry leaves.”

“But there aren’t any of those around here.” Noted Frisk as she too turned around to face the sound. 

Chara looked over at Asriel with a suspicious glare, which he returned with wide, pleading eyes. It was only now that Frisk noticed Asriel’s cheeks were just a bit bigger than normal and he was standing stone stiff. 

“Azzy,” Sighed Chara. “I can’t take my eyes off you for one second, can I?”

Asriel said nothing, confirming Frisk’s suspicions. 

“What are you trying to eat?” Hissed Chara. “Open your mouth. Now.”

“Nuh uh!” Mumbled Asriel, his mouth too full of… something to respond properly. 

“I wasn’t asking.”

Asriel opened his mouth with a “Bleh” sound, revealing the half chewed remains of an echo flower. Frisk snorted at the sight. It had already stained his tongue blue, like the plants of Waterfall. 

“I really can’t take you anywhere, can I?” Groaned Chara. 

“I wath hungwy!” Whined Asriel. “The ‘utherscoth tok‘ade ‘e wanna thnack…”

“Well you better spit it out. We don’t know what eating these does to you.”

“Ut…”

“But what?”

“Ut I don wanna in fronta Undyne. Thaths gwoth!”

“She and Frisk had a burping competition a week ago. I don’t think you can gross her out.”

“Heck yeah we did!” Undyne added proudly. “I won, too!”

Asriel turned around and spat out the mess of plant matter. It took him multiple tries before Chara was convinced all the flower bits were out of his mouth, but then they were able to continue on their way. 

“How’d it taste?” Frisk asked as they approached the edge of the tunnel. 

Asriel’s reply was meek and embarrassed.

“K-kind of… peppery, I guess? Not the best, really.” 

“Thanks for taste testing. Now I know not to eat it either.”

“Who eats flowers?” Undyne inquired. “Like, really, who looks at that and thinks ‘oh yeah that’s probably delicious!’?”

“Azzy, apparently.” Answered Frisk. “Sometimes he’s just curious and sometimes he actually thinks they look tasty. Or he’s just really hungry.”

An embarrassed whimper from Asriel prompted Frisk to stop her teasing. 

The group stepped into the tunnel ahead. It was even darker than the cavern they had come from, but Waterfall’s luminescent growths and gems lit their way without much trouble. The passage was so tall and wide that walking through it was akin to being inside a giant’s home. 

Being beside her siblings and best friend bolstered Frisk’s courage, and in the end it was more exciting than scary. Their footsteps — aside from those of Asriel’s silent paws — echoed conspicuously down the tunnel. If anything had been living in there, it would have noticed their presence for sure. 

Fortunately, nothing happened. All was quiet except for the four children as they made their way to the other end of the tunnel. They emerged on a ledge overlooking a massive cavern. The ceiling was so high here that darkness obscured any view of the top; but through this darkness shone bright stones on the ceiling far above, twinkling like stars.

Beneath this facsimile of the night sky was a vast body of water that stretched off to the childrens’ left as far as the eye could see, becoming ever wider as it faded into the distance. Gentle waves rose and fell with an inexplicable tide against its shore. 

A natural ramp of earth and rock ran from the ledge down to the land by the water, while on the other side of the cavern was yet another passageway like the one they had just traversed But for now the water held their attention. It was like the beginning of an underground sea, and Frisk wondered if that wasn’t exactly what it was. 

“Come on, Undyne!” She shouted. “I wanna know how deep the water is!”

Frisk ran down the natural ramp with Undyne close behind. Asriel took a moment to break from his stupor, but he too followed with Chara by his side. The children stopped at the edge of the water, just before the spot where the waves touched the grass. With a loud “Ngahh!!” Undyne jumped in to confront the watery depths and vanished beneath the glowing surface with a mighty splash. 

Frisk became worried when she didn’t emerge after a few minutes; this was an unknown place for them, and wasn’t it possible that something horrible was living in that water? Her worries were proven pointless when after another couple minutes, Undyne climbed onto the shore with a still-wriggling fish held halfway in her mouth. 

Chara only raised an eyebrow, but Frisk and Asriel stared wide eyed at the sight of the small animal thrashing to free itself from Undyne’s jaws. This spectacle ended when she bit down with her two prominent fangs and put the fish out of its misery before chowing down on it. She looked with confusion between Frisk’s astounded face and Asriel’s wide-eyed, slack-jawed expression as she gulped down the last remnants of her prey.

“What?” She asked when her mouth was finally clear. “That butterscotch talk got me hungry too.” After wiping a bit of stray fish… stuff — Frisk wasn’t sure what it was — from her face, Undyne stepped back onto the dry part of the shore. 

“Anyway,” Continued Undyne. “it gets deeper and deeper the further out you go. Colder too. I think I even saw some underwater tunnels…”

“Wow…” Whispered Asriel. “That’s amazing! I wish I could swim like you!”

Undyne crossed her arms and looked at him with supreme smugness. “Maybe ya can and you just don’t know yet. How about I toss you in and we test that theory?”

  
Asriel seized up in fright at the mere thought. Frisk could see tears welling up in his eyes and decided it was time to intervene. 

“Undyne! Don’t make my brother all soggy… or drowned. He still can’t swim.”

“I was just kidding.” Huffed Undyne. “I woulda fished him out though if he had agreed…”

Chara gave her head a grim shake. “Considering what you did to that fish I’m not very reassured by that. We should keep going.”

“Gimme a minute.” Piped Frisk. “I wanna look a little more.”

Chara calmed Asriel’s nerves with some careful words. Once he stopped trembling they all sat down by the shore and looked out across the water. It was a beautiful sight. Bright stones on the cavern roof miles above looked like the little points of light that dotted the surface’s sky at night. The luminescent water and glowing plants around them lent an otherworldly quality to the experience. 

Frisk imagined she was in one of her magical fantasy worlds, gazing out over the sea during a clear night. In a way, she was. Most children would love to be in Frisk’s position right then, exploring a magical land with their best friends. 

“Hey, Azzy.” She said after a while of looking. “Wanna wish upon a star?”

Asriel looked at her, confused. “Huh?”

“I know these aren’t REAL stars, but they’re pretty close. People say that if you make a wish on one it’ll come true. Wanna try it?”

Asriel thought for a moment and then looked over at Chara. 

“You wanna make a wish first?” He asked her. “You’re really smart so I bet you’d know the best thing to wish for!”

Chara looked up at the stars. They twinkled and gleamed in the vast darkness above them. She hesitated. For a long moment, there was only the sound of breathing and the gentle lapping of water.

Just as Undyne started to fidget, Chara’s voice rang out through the cavernous depths, quiet but firm. 

“I wish…”

She swallowed before continuing.

“I wish that things could be like this… forever. That we could always be together, and that nothing would ever tear us apart.” She turned to Asriel, a faint smile on her face.

His eyes grew moist. There were no tears, but Frisk heard a little sniffle as he wiped them dry. 

“Th-That’s my wish too…”

Frisk smiled. “It’s a good one.” 

After Asriel calmed himself they got up and continued down the next passage. It criss-crossed with many others and confused all but Chara, who assured them that she would remember the way back just fine. 

Eventually, they came to another cavern that was dominated by what Frisk would describe as a swamp. The ground was an earthy layer of soil, dotted by glowing pools of water upon which lilypads floated. Tall, bright ferns and the occasional echo flower made up the majority of the plant life. 

Toads and frogs ceased their croaking and retreated into their pools upon the children’s approach, bathing the marsh in a silence broken only by the dripping of water from stalactites that hung far above the pools. 

Most of the ground was damp, but there was a single path through the marsh that was just dry enough to spare their shoes from getting covered in mud. On the other side of the swamp was a massive cave mouth. Beyond its looming arch, the crystals and growths that permeated Waterfall seemed to be entirely absent. Even stranger was that none of the light from the swamp penetrated beyond the natural aperture.

They stood at the threshold, just before the wall of darkness, and contemplated the curious phenomenon. Frisk hesitantly reached a hand into the opening and lost sight of it completely, but felt only empty air. She jerked it back out of the dark and saw that it was unmarred and still attached to her arm.

“What’s with this thing?” Asked Undyne. “It’s like it… eats light or something.”

“That’s… a scary idea.” Replied Frisk. “But yeah, it kinda does.”

Asriel held out an open palm and created a little magical luminescence in it, not unlike the sort of night light a child would have by their bedside. 

“Well I’m not afraid of it!” He declared. “I’d like to see it eat this light!”

With that, he took a few steps forward and vanished into the dark before anyone could stop him. Not even his magic light was visible. Frisk and Chara began calling out for Asriel to come back but to no avail. He either couldn’t hear them or had been — god forbid — somehow incapacitated. 

A pang of guilt wracked Frisk’s heart. Asriel was probably terrified right now, and it was all her fault for having brought him here. She and Chara began to step forward, intending to try and rescue their brother from whatever he had gotten himself into.

Undyne got in front of them and put a hand on each of their shoulders, stopping them in their tracks.

“No,” She said. “I’ll do it. You two are important. Can’t have you going missing too.” Then with a look at Frisk, she added “Besides, I’m the knight in shining armor, right? This is my job.”

She turned and jumped into the wall of shadows, her deafening “NGAHH!!” cut off mid-way as she vanished.

“She is kinda right.” Chara noted. “I’m probably the only one of us who remembers the way back in case we need to go get help. Stepping inside would have been reckless on my part.”

“You’re worried about Azzy.” Replied Frisk. “Nothing wrong with that.” 

“There is if I let it make me do stupid things. I can’t help anyone if I do something dumb like that.”

“Sometimes only your soul knows what’s right, and you have to let it guide you.”

Chara had no response, so the two paced and worried as they waited for Undyne to return with Asriel. Frisk grew closer and closer to stepping inside with every passing second; it felt wrong to be standing out there doing nothing while her brother was in trouble. 

Her heart soared when Undyne stepped back out. She was carrying a curled up, bawling Asriel in her arms. Despite his crying he seemed unharmed, even when Undyne let him drop to the ground with a gentle thud.

Frisk and Chara rushed to his side. The pair alternated between consoling him and asking or demanding an explanation for what had happened beyond the darkness. Each took turns petting his head as they spoke, as much for their own comfort as his. After a while, Asriel’s crying turned to sniveling and he was able to respond. 

“I-it was s-so dark… I-I couldn’t h-h-hear o-or see anything... a-and then s-something p-p-picked me uuuuuuup…”

“You’re safe now.” Chara assured him. “That was just Undyne picking you up so she could get you out.”

“It was smart of you not to move much.” Frisk added. “Otherwise Undyne might never have found you.”

“I don’t think he moved at all.” Said Undyne. “He was standing still as a statue when I bumped into him in the dark, shaking like a leaf too.”

“Statues don’t shake like leaves.” Replied Chara. 

“Shuddup! You know what I meant!”

“We should go home.” Frisk said before Chara could retort. “Azzy’s all scared now.”

Chara nodded and picked Asriel up, slinging the trembling ball of fur over her shoulder. 

“Good idea. I’ll take the first turn carrying him.”

Frisk nodded back and the group set off for home. Undyne grumbled about stopping their expedition for a “little wuss who’s afraid of the dark” but accompanied them nonetheless. The two sisters were even able to talk her into carrying Asriel when their own legs and shoulders were too sore to do so.

With tired, aching feet they arrived back at the palace. It was well past lunch now, and Toriel would undoubtedly be worried about them. There they parted ways with Undyne, for she needed to head back to Gerson’s for her own supper. Frisk invited her to join them, saying that her parents would love to hear how she saved Asriel, but she would have none of it. She did, however, ask to talk to Frisk alone before they entered the palace. Frisk obliged and Chara went on ahead to get Asriel back home. 

“So what did you need me for?” Frisk asked. 

Undyne fidgeted, looking abashed as she replied. “Just… just wanted to thank you for bringing me along. I-It made me feel useful.”

That gave Frisk the warmest, fuzziest feeling inside. She had been worried that Undyne was more annoyed than anything.

“That’s great!” She said with a smile. “I hope you had fun too. It was great to have you along!”

“It… yeah, it was fun. A nice break from everything else.”

Frisk’s smile became a concerned look. Undyne sounded troubled, something Frisk hadn’t expected on today of all days.

“What’s goin’ on? Not enjoying living with Gerson?”  
  
“Not exactly, it’s just that… that I still can’t get him to agree to train me.”

“Why not?”

“I dunno! Every day I ask and every day he asks the same question.”

“What’s the question?”

Undyne put on her best old man voice. It sounded something like the creaking of an old wooden house. “Why do you want that, lass?”

Frisk giggled at the impression, but quickly snapped back to a serious demeanor.

“So... what do you answer?”

“I tell the truth. That I want to make… that I want to make THEM pay for what they did.”

“And he doesn’t like that?”

“He shakes his head kinda sad-like and that makes me sad too so we don't talk about it the rest of the day.”

“Maybe he doesn’t like the answer.”

“What better answer could there be?”

Frisk thought hard, pondering all the stories she had read and heard about heroes and their motivations.

“Well, I think if I told you an answer that would be like cheating on a test. Maybe… maybe you should ask Gerson what HIS answer would be?”

“That’s a good point.” Murmured Undyne. “I guess I’ve never really asked.”

She burst out into the wide, toothy grin Frisk had come to know and love in just a short couple of months. “Thanks, Frisk! You’re a great friend! I’ll ask tomorrow!”

“Good luck!” Frisk called as Undyne ran off, much too excited for the obligatory goodbye hug that Frisk usually insisted on. 

Frisk now stood alone on the steps of the palace, and after Undyne vanished into the distance, she stepped into the warm light of the royal building. Her hearth, home, and family awaited.


	3. Justice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After her adventure in Waterfall, Undyne confronts Gerson about the matter of her "squireship."

Undyne returned alone to Waterfall, where she lived with Gerson. Curiously, monsterkind’s greatest champion ran a very modest store when he was off duty. When she asked about it once, he told her that his moonlighting as a humble shopkeeper was inspired by games he played as a child. Undyne could not believe Gerson had ever been young, much less a kid like herself, but it was a sin to tell a lie and the Hammer of Justice never lied.

The storefront consisted of a simple wooden desk that spanned the width of a small cave opening. Behind it was a circular chamber whose walls sparkled with embedded gemstones and were lined with racks and shelves of play weapons, fizzy fruit drinks labeled “potions,” and tea packets. Groups of kids playing in Waterfall could always count on Old Man Gerson to “arm” and “provision” their adventure games free of charge while the grownups accompanying them could relax and chat over a freshly brewed cup of tea.

Undyne hopped over the table and moved one of the bookcases at the back of the room to reveal a plain metal door. She withdrew a key from her pocket and unlocked it, stepping just inside the doorway before moving the bookcase back in place and closing the passage behind her. 

The cave she had entered served as Gerson’s humble home. There were only four rooms: a kitchen, a living room, and two bedrooms, one of which had been repurposed from storing spare stock as he had never intended to live with another until Undyne came around. 

Tired from the day’s events, Undyne passed out on her bed a mere hour after having supper with Gerson. It had been some kind of stir-fried fish mixed with gravy and tofu and had her curiosity exceeded her fatigue, she might have even asked what sort of fish it was. Ultimately, such details were less important to her than the fact a warm meal had been ready for her and that it tasted good.

Undyne believed that Frisk’s company and the thrill of exploration made the trip worth the exhaustion. She would have liked it even more if it had just been the two of them. The prince was an annoying crybaby the entire time and was the reason they had to come home early. 

As for Chara, well… Chara was weird and not in a good way. Aside from her being an emotionless buzzkill, there was also something unnerving about her aura that Undyne couldn’t quite put her finger on beyond a bad vibe.

Regardless, she had a fun time exploring Waterfall and looked forward to the next opportunity. She had beheld many beautiful sights and knew the lay of the land better now, but it was Frisk's company and advice that stuck with her most. 

The next morning she emerged from her room and found her way to Gerson’s kitchen, where the stocky turtle was heating up porridge on a stove. Last night’s meal had been a gift from Toriel as Gerson himself only knew how to prepare humbler dishes. 

“Well well, yer up late.” Gerson commented, having noticed her approach without turning to look.

“I was tired yesterday.” She replied, taking a seat on the stool Gerson had brought in as a second chair.

“Well that’s good. Younguns your age should be comin’ home tired every day. Means ye’r out there apply’n yerselves.”

Gerson sprinkled some cinnamon sugar into the oatmeal before doling the stuff out into bowls for himself and Undyne. Serving his self-appointed “squire” before himself, he then took a seat across from her.

She joined him in a brief prayer despite having a not insignificant urge to dig right in. Once it was concluded, they both started eating their breakfast, though Undyne went about it somewhat lackadaisically. After a short while, Gerson put down his spoon and sighed wearily.

“I can tell somethin’s botherin’ ya.” He said. “Is it the usual? ‘Cause if it is, we ought ta get the daily song and dance out of the way now.”

Undyne shook her head. “No, sir. I still want you to train me, but… I have a different question today.”

“Oh? And what might that be?”

Undyne took a long, deep breath and gazed directly into Gerson’s eyes. 

“You keep asking me that one question and I keep telling you the truth. But Frisk said that I don’t know what YOUR answer to that question is. So please, sir Gerson, tell me why YOU do what you do?”

Gerson leaned back in his chair and sighed, looking more tired than usual. 

”I hope ye’r not askin’ just so ye can parrot my answer back at me when next I ask ye why ya want me to train ya.”

“I wasn’t gonna!” Protested Undyne, despite the fact that she definitely was. 

Gerson crossed his arms. “Really now?”

“Well… maybe I was… but you can tell me anyway, right? How else am I gonna learn?”

After a while of looking between her and his porridge, Gerson relented. 

“Fer justice, lass. Doin’ right by others and standin’ up for decent folk against those who would do em harm. That’s all any of us can ever do.”

“But that’s why I wanna fight too!” Undyne exclaimed, shadowboxing from her seat. “I’m your squire, anyway! You’re supposed to teach me that kinda stuff!”

Gerson shook his head. “Just ’cause ye say ye’r my squire don’t make it so. Ye’r my ward. There’s a difference.”

Undyne huffed and crossed her arms. “Like what?”

“Bein’ m’ ward means I’m just ye’r legal guardian.Ye’r not obligated nor encouraged to assist me with m’ knightly duties, let alone learn how ta fight!”

“Even if I don’t hafta, I wanna! You know I wanna be one of the good guys, so why won’t you teach me?”

“Because I know that teachin’ ye how ta fight would set ye on a mad quest for revenge that ye’ve got no hope of achieving. Mah business has always been savin’ lives. I aint too keen on helpin’ ya throw away yer’s and I gots me a responsibility ta make sure ye’ grow up right and proper.”

Undyne had intended to keep calm, but Gerson’s words set her blood boiling.

“But you said it yourself, mister Gerson! That THING will keep coming back unless someone destroys its master!”

“And I also said it was impossible. Didn’t I?”

“Maybe for you.”

Gerson rested his arms on the table and held his head in his hands.

“You haven’t got a clue what ye’r talkin’ about, lass. The demon in the void is beyond you, me, or anything in the whole wide world. Its time will only come on Judgment Day.”

“That’s your plan? Sit around and do nothing?” Undyne huffed. “How many more people are gonna get hurt before then? How many more families like mine are you gonna let it ruin?”

Gerson’s beak contorted into a scowl betraying equal parts hurt and anger.

“I’m not lettin’ it do ANYTHING if I can help it! I send it back to the void whenever it rears its ugly head. That’s all that can be done about it.”

Undyne’s fist curled around her spoon, bending the metal ever so slightly.

“So how’s it justice when nothing’s changed?! The bad guy gets to keep coming back to do the same terrible things over and over again!” 

“Every time that thing gets sent back, it loses its memories. All the progress it made towards its heinous goal gets erased. Set back to zero. The world remains the same.”

“Except there’s less people in it now. Too bad for them, right?!”

Gerson’s scowl faded into a look of pity. 

“Justice doesn’t hafta be about killin’ your enemies, Undyne. It can mean dedicatin’ yer life to carrying out their wishes, finishin’ whatever business they had left. In your case that’d mean living as happy a life as ya can. I’m sure that’s what ye’r ma and pa woulda wanted.”

Undyne stood up. Her gaze turned fiery even as Gerson’s eyes pleaded with her to calm down. 

“I’ll tell you what they would have wanted! They would want me to make sure that their killer never hurts anyone ever again! That would be REAL justice!”

Gerson nodded, a pang of guilt passing over him. 

“And if I could, I would. But I can’t do a thing except challenge it again when it returns. Tryin’ to achieve the impossible would only distract me from the safety of those who still live.”

“So that’s it then?” Undyne asked with a challenging tone. “They’re gone, just like that, and you won’t do anything more about it?”

“There’s nothin’ more ta do. What happened to them was an awful, tragic thing but it’s over. I can’t bring them back from the dead nor can I kill th’ demon in the void. All I can do is keep the world the way it is; give everyone who remains a chance to live life to its fullest.”

Undyne tried to hide her angry glare from Gerson by looking down at the table. All his words did was stoke the fire in her heart; the burning desire to rid the world of the evil that had ripped her parents from her. They had both been guardians of the law, ones who wouldn’t stop until justice had been done. _That_ justice, to her understanding, was stopping evildoers from hurting anyone ever again no matter the cost.

The memories came flooding back to her. 

A little girl, playing with her parents in the wee hours of the evening. Listening to stories of her mom’s adventures by the fireside. Hanging around the kitchen just to catch a whiff of her father's cooking. Their warm embrace when she was scared; their strong, comforting voices twin anchors in a huge and frightening world.

Driftwood by the sea; come one day and gone the next. Lost to the ceaseless tides of a dark ocean.

Undyne balled her fists. Why wouldn't Gerson understand? A strangled whimper fled through her clenched teeth. 

"Lass, I-"

Undyne cried out in frustration and backhanded her bowl off the table, spilling its contents across the soft grasses that covered the cavern floor. 

Gerson took slow, deliberate steps over to her side and cupped her trembling fist with both hands. Her crying turned into choked sobs, tears flowing down her scaly cheeks and onto her clothes.

"I… I miss them so much, m-mister Gerson… I j-just want them back…"

She looked at him with pleading eyes as if he could somehow fulfill her wish. But even the Hammer of Justice could not bring back the dead. What he could do was give her a hug, which he did. It helped, even though all she wanted was to be in the comforting embrace of her parents again. 

“I’m sorry, lass. I truly am.” He sighed. “I wish they were back too. But they wouldn’t want ya to spend yer whole life full o’ hate and obsessin’ with revenge, now would they? They’d wantcha to live and love and to be happy, to keep being the daughter they raised for all them years.”

“They shouldn’t be gone...” She murmured between sobs. “It isn’t fair! Th-They were good people…”

Gerson’s sturdy hand patted her on the back. The motion was calming, but far from enough to stop Undyne’s flood of emotions. She clung to him tighter, digging her fingers into the shell on his back. It was reassuringly steady, like a rock in those dark waters.

“I’ll make them pay.” She growled deeply. “Every last one of them. That’s how I’ll honor my parent’s memory; by making sure they never hurt anyone again. Even if I have to go to the ends of the earth to do it.”

Gerson released her from his embrace and regarded her with a look of pity. 

“Lass, that ain’t no way ta-”

He stopped mid sentence as his eyes met hers. Undyne watched his face shift from a look of confusion to worry and then finally to something else that she couldn’t place. 

“Sir Gerson?” She asked, forgetting her anger for the time being. “Is something wrong?”

He stared at her, wide-eyed and unspeaking. His face was frozen in what began to seem like fear, but that couldn’t be true. What reason had he to fear her? After an uncomfortably long silence, he roused himself from his strange paralysis and signed a holy symbol across his body with one hand while muttering a prayer under his breath.

“Gerson!” Shouted Undyne. “What is it?!”

He began to pace back and forth in front of her, his eyes moving from the floor to the ceiling and back again. 

“Oh, Lord in Heaven help her…”

“Gerson!!” 

“Sorry, I’m sorry.” The turtle-monster spoke, his breathing erratic. “I just… I need ta… ta bring ye to see Asgore. It’s important, I swear it.”

“Can you just tell me what’s-”

“Please, lass, don’t argue with me. This is important, all right?”

“Then why won’t you-”

“Because I can’t explain it!” Snapped Gerson. “Not to you. Not right now. So please, Undyne, just trust me.”

Undyne nodded hesitantly. “A-All right… but you’re scaring me with this.”

“Everything will be explained to ya when the time’s right.” Gerson reassured her, putting both hands on her shoulders. “I promise..”

With that, Gerson made for the door and Undyne followed after him. They made haste through Waterfall, then Hotland, and finally the bustling streets of New Home until they reached the palace. Gerson was silent the whole way save for the occasional muttering that Undyne didn’t understand. 

Was something wrong with her? Had she said something to upset Gerson? How bad did it have to be to put such fear in the eyes of the Underground’s greatest hero? 

They moved through the long corridors of the royal complex with such haste and urgency that even old friends of Gerson let them pass without anything more than a simple salutation. When at last they reached the grand double doors that led to the throne room, Gerson told Undyne to wait outside and she agreed without a word of protest. 

However, no one told her she couldn’t listen in either. Once Gerson had entered the throne room, she crouched down and put her earfin to the tiny gap between the door and the floor. The two towering, armored guards didn’t seem to mind this and continued chatting idly while she eavesdropped. 

“Ah! Howdy, Gerson!” Asgore’s friendly voice boomed on the other side of the door. “You’ve come at a good time. I just finished an audience and won’t have another for an hour. To what do I owe the occasion?”

“Ach, I wish it coulda been for a happier reason, m’lord. ‘Tis about the young lass.” 

“Oh? Is something wrong? Did Tori’s cooking not agree with her?”

“No, no, she liked the dish just fine. The problem is that ever since I took her in, she’s been askin’ me every day when I’m gonna train her.”

“I suppose we should have seen this coming when she first insisted that she would be your squire…”

“Aye. Foolish of me ta dismiss it as a flight of fancy. Tellin’ her ‘no’ has been a daily occurrence since her mind’s deadset on doin’ the impossible: killin’ the demon in the void.”

Gerson paused to groan in frustration. 

“Ach, I shouldn’t have told her so soon. She didn’t hafta know that the Crawlin’ Chaos ain’t really dead…"

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, old friend.” Said Asgore. “After all she’s suffered, she deserved to know the truth and would’ve asked about it on her own before long. But, please, continue.”

“Right, right… well, today we had another spat about it. Nothin’ I say can convince her to try and live a normal life. We both got sorta fired up and I’m afraid I made the poor lass weep. Once the tears dried though, she looked me in the eyes and… I saw _it_.” 

“Saw what?”

The quiet that followed made Undyne think Gerson had started whispering, but when he finally spoke again his words were still audible.

“Determination.”

Again there was a pause, after which Asgore chuckled uncomfortably. 

“G-Gerson, old friend, I do not wish to impugn you, but I think you must be imagining things. Your job is very stressful after all. Perhaps an extended vacation is in order?”

“I know what I saw. Twin stars, in her eyes, gleaming gold like a pair of suns.”

“I see. So, you’re absolutely certain of it?”

“Without a doubt, ol’ boy. That girl ‘as the fire o’ our ancestors burnin’ in her veins and she hasn’t even taken a life.”

“Then… what does this change?”

“You tell me. I’m afraid for her. If she goes down my path with _that_ already in her… well, she better have the heart of a saint. I don’t trust m’ own judgment on this, but I trust yers. That’s why yer king.”

“You do me too much honor. Would that this crown imparted such wisdom…” Asgore sighed as he took off the royal headdress and looked upon his reflection in the polished gold. “...I doubt my forebears’ war would have persisted to this day. Maybe then I would have something more to give my boy than a fancy hat and chair amid a world of horrors.”

“There’s time fer that yet, ye’r majesty. Yer reign’s far from over, much as ye rightly deserve a rest.”

“As unlikely as a sudden breakthrough seems, I appreciate the sentiment, old friend,” Asgore spoke, donning the crown once again. “My apologies, I seem to have gone and gotten us off track. I need a moment to think about poor Undyne’s plight and this… determination you saw.”

Asgore was silent for a long while. Undyne imagined him stroking his beard thoughtfully with one hand and sipping tea with the other.

“God often has a way of making good come from bad.”

“Whaddya mean?” Asked Gerson.

“It would appear that, in their haste to extinguish her bloodline, the demons have created their own greatest foe. From what you say, she has already decided on her path in life. Whether you train her or not, she intends to take the fight to them in ways we would not dare. The only choice we have in the matter is if we would help or hinder her.”

“But Asgore, I… I’m not so certain about teachin’ her to follow in my footsteps. She’s strong, to be sure, just ask my spoons. Brave as well, darn near fearless even.”

“Hmm, those sound an awful lot like heroic traits to me.” 

“She’s also a rash, fiery hothead who dives into everything headfirst. Is that the kind of protector our people need?”

“Discipline and temperance are important, yes, but they can be taught over time. The thing that matters most of all is what resides at the core of young Undyne’s character. Do you recall who her parents were, Gerson? A town guard and a judge; administrators of justice and defenders of the people. It’s in her blood. She may be rougher around the edges than our champions of yore, but I believe there is a hero for every time and every place. At one point, our people needed a hammer; both a tool and a weapon, able to build and to break. I see her becoming a different kind of force of good someday: the tip of the spear that strikes deep and pierces the heart of the enemy. Would it not be a grave mistake on our part to not try and realize her full potential?”

“Be that as it may, there hasn’t been a monster with natural determination outside the royal family in time out of mind! Aren’t ya a little concerned as to what that might mean?”

“Indeed I am. But if we let ourselves become paralyzed by fear we may do both Undyne and the world a great disservice. Bring her in, please. I would like to speak with her.”

Another bout of silence, broken only by the sound of Gerson’s footsteps approaching the door. Undyne scrambled to her feet and backed away before it opened, revealing Gerson’s consternated face.

“Aight, lass, King Fluffybuns wants ta see ya.”

Undyne gave a respectful nod and followed Gerson inside. Before she knew it, she was standing at the base of the tiny flight of stairs that led up to the royal thrones. Only Asgore’s was occupied which meant Toriel must have been busy with the royal children. 

“Good afternoon, Undyne.” Said the king as he rose from his seat and stepped down to the main floor of the palace. There he crouched low on one knee until he was eye to eye with Undyne. “How’s Gerson been treating you?”

Undyne did her best imitation of a soldier at attention.

“Very well, sir!” She replied. 

Asgore’s gentle smile widened and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

“Please, do not be so formal. I may be your king but I would also like to be your friend.”

“Then can you tell me what’s going on? I don’t even know why sir Gerson brought me here.”

“There is no need to worry. Gerson is just very… concerned for your health.”

Asgore stopped and mulled over his next words for a while. 

“You are possessed of an incredible gift,” He finally said. “One that has not been seen in a monster for generations. Yet it is a dangerous thing, especially if you follow in Gerson’s path. It is a darkness in the heart. A temptation that you shall... no, _must_ always be fighting against. At the same time, it is a great strength, one that can help you do much good in the world. In that way, it is no different than any other gift a person may possess.”

“W-What is it? What’s going on with me?”

Asgore uttered a great sigh as his shoulders slumped.

“I wish I could say for certain what caused it to appear. All I know is that you possess a great strength within your soul, one that we call ‘determination.’ It would make any normal monster become terribly ill as if poisoned, but it flows through you as naturally as your own blood.”

“That sounds awesome!” Exclaimed Undyne, jumping and pumping her fist in excitement. “So you’re saying I’m some kinda chosen one?”

Asgore remained stoic and his solemn expression cured Undyne of her initial elation.

“You are only what you make of yourself.” He clarified, his deep voice just louder than a whisper. “No one but you can decide your fate. However, it is clear that the Almighty has chosen a very special cross for you to bear.”

“How’s this a bad thing? It sounds really cool to me!”

“Power ill-used is a sure path to ill ends. From this throne, I could commit unimaginable atrocities were I of the mind to do so.”

“But you wouldn’t, right?”

“Indeed I wouldn’t but the temptation is always there and it can take many shapes and forms. The heart has a way of always seeking the quick and easy path, gaining the most reward for the least effort, often at the expense of others. For example, if I wanted to put a stop to burglaries I could simply lock everyone up in their homes except for my own guards. There’d be no more break-ins but it wouldn’t be a good solution now would it?”

“No,” Undyne murmured, perturbed at the thought of Asgore doing such bad things. “I guess it wouldn’t be…”

“Even with— no, _especially_ with the best intentions, it is all too easy for good people to trick themselves into doing an evil thing. If you wish to be a great hero like Gerson, then you must always keep this in mind. Your passions make you powerful but will also make the temptations that lie ahead all the harder to resist.”

Undyne thought for a moment. A long moment. She could not pretend that she understood the full extent of what Asgore meant, but she knew one thing; whatever strength lay within her would be wasted on a quiet life in Ebott. 

“I’m not scared.” She told Asgore. “I’ll make the demons pay for what they’ve done someday, no matter what it takes! And once I do, no kid will lose their parents like I did ever again!”

“What it takes is to have a kind heart, but I believe you are quite capable of that. Nevertheless, your mentor shall have the great responsibility of proving me right. Be good to him and listen well, will you?”

Undyne once more did her best impression of the royal guard’s salute. "I will, sir!" 

Asgore smiled again and stood back up. “Gerson, I think you have your answer. It is my belief that you will find no better pupil in all the kingdom.”

Gerson still looked uncertain, but now he seemed resigned. It was clear the choice was out of his hands.

“Welp,” he sighed. “Suppose that’s that. Y’ won’t hear any objections from me.”

“I put great trust in both you and Undyne by making this choice.” Said Asgore. “It weighs on my heart as well but Frisk always sings of Undyne’s praises whenever her name is brought up. Despite her youth, my daughter has proven time and again to be wise beyond her years and I feel in my soul that I would regret not trusting her on this.” 

Then he addressed Undyne once more, making her feel small with his powerful tone and stern gaze. “And if you truly wish to do good, it would be a crime to stop you. Gerson shall tell you more about the nature of determination. If that makes you change your mind, I would not begrudge you that choice. But for now, I officially welcome you to the court as Gerson’s squire, even if you cannot truly begin training for battle until you are thirteen.” 

“Thank you, sir!” Undyne said with a wide smile. “I promise you won’t be sorry!”

“Do not promise such things so hastily.” Said Asgore. “Such oaths are of greater import than one your age may realize. I trust Gerson to teach you right and I trust you to listen to him.”

Gerson looked at Asgore and then back to Undyne. He gave a sigh of resignation as a smile crossed his face. 

“Then that’s how it’ll be. I hafta admit, the thought o’ passin’ the torch makes me wanta tear up a little.”

He shook his head, grin growing wider.

“Ach, but I’m gettin’ ahead o’ m’self! I think the company will do me good if nothing else.”

Gerson nodded at Asgore, seeming satisfied at last with the decision.

“I’ll teach her right, m’lord. One day the little tyke here will be a champion the whole Underground can look up to!”

* * *

_Before we continue, I feel there is something I must make clear, lest the enormity of these events be lost on you. Do not attribute Undyne’s exceptionalism to the determination that flowed through her at such a young age. Rather, know that her determination came from her own nature; it would be doing her a grave injustice to imply the opposite. She was not chosen by the universe to possess determination. The universe chose her because of what was in her soul._

_Now then, where was I? Oh yes. Next we return to the Prince..._


	4. Strength

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asriel has his own worries and doubts during his youth, as small as they may be in the grand scheme of thing.

Two years passed, during which life settled into a rhythm for Undyne. The average day had her running laps around Waterfall, beating up dummies before sparring with Gerson, maintaining their weapons and armor, cleaning up the house, and reading about famous battles from ancient wars. It was hard work, to be sure, but she always enjoyed a good challenge and never lost sight of what she was training for. 

Asriel’s daily routine was no less regimented; though he just couldn’t muster the same enthusiasm when it came to learning proper etiquette, studying politics, and practicing how to eat with ten different pieces of silverware. He was on a slow Hotland conveyor belt to the throne and he’d arrive at his destination with no effort on his part, not that he was in any hurry to get there.

The young prince’s mind was troubled as he padded up the stairs of his house that day. He had been out playing with other kids while Chara and Frisk were busy with schoolwork, and had brought a problem back with him. Fortunately, Chara was usually done with her lessons by now and free to use her smarts on other things. 

Asriel reached the top of the stairs and rapped a knuckle on Chara’s door. An instant later, he heard Chara’s commanding tone telling him to come in. He obliged, and found the oldest of her two younger sisters lying on her bed with her face buried in a large book. Those made Asriel’s brain hurt so he decided not to bother asking Chara what it was about.

“H-Hi Chara!” He said as he closed the door behind him. “How’d your lessons go?”

Chara craned her neck to look at him from her resting position and then immediately closed her book and put it down. “What’s wrong, Azzy? You’ve got that look. Not having fun with the other kids?”

Asriel sighed as he sat down on Frisk’s bed, across from Chara’s. He held his head in his hands and gazed down at the floor as he spoke. “Not really. They all let me win without even trying. Again!”

Chara exhaled, sat up, and gave Asriel a wry smirk. “But you always asked Frisk and I to let you win when we played together. Guess you should have been careful what you wished for, huh?”

“But that’s different! I never asked them to let me win, they just do!”

“So you wish they’d at least give you a chance, huh? Well, you don’t need to worry. Frisk and I will never take it easy on you.”

"I know you two wouldn’t do that, but… I just wish other people wouldn't either. Even mom and dad don’t think I can do much on my own…”

“To be fair to them, you’re nine. You’re not supposed to be taking care of yourself yet.”

“I know, but… but I’m not a baby either!”

Chara chuckled. “Right. You just seem like one.”

“Come on, Charaaa… don’t say things like that…” 

“I’m joking, Azzy. Well, mostly. You do look soft, and people tend to want to protect soft things, and the feelings of soft things.”

“But I’m not soft!”

Chara raised a single eyebrow. The gesture quickly made Asriel reconsider his words.

“Well… okay, maybe I am soft… b-but that doesn’t mean I can’t be tough too!”

“That takes work, Azzy. A lot of work, given your looks.”

“What kinda work?”

Chara leaned back against her pillow and stared thoughtfully at the ceiling. This was when Asriel knew to be quiet; the wheels were turning in her head and it wouldn’t do to interrupt them. 

“Well,” She spoke after a few moments of pause. “I think it’s the kind of work you ought to do anyway. Since you're the prince and you want people to not just let you win at stuff.”

“What is it, Chara?”

She sat up again and put on the most regal bearing one her age could manage. 

“I, Chara, your most trusted advisor, will formulate an exercise routine for you.”

“A what?”

“Exercise, Asriel. It’s what you need to do if you want to get any tougher. Lots of it. If you’re strong and fast then people will respect you enough to stop babying you and start listening to you for real. That’s how the world works. You need to be strong. “Here.” She said as she flexed her arm and pointed to her bicep. “And here too.” She continued as she pointed to her forehead. 

Asriel cocked his head at her. “So… what are we doing?”

Chara groaned and let her shoulders slump. “You know when you run a bunch during our adventure games?”

“Yep! I get real tired after those. Sometimes I even nap!”

“Well, we’re going to be doing that but with less play. Along with a lot of other exercises that might not be a lot of fun.”

“Now you’re making it sound scary…”

“Isn’t that what you want to be though? Scary? Like in those drawings you have under your-”

“How do you know about those?! ”

Asriel didn’t bother to bring up the fact that he had made them a whole year ago and that he had very definitely matured a ton since then. Chara wouldn’t have believed him, especially since he had kept those old drawings around as to not… waste paper. Yeah, that was it.

“I was just making a point, Azzy. You’d like to be taken seriously and right now you’re not.”

“P-Pretty much, yeah.”

“Then there’s no two ways about it. You just have to get stronger and I know how to make that happen. You trust me?”

“Always!”

Chara stood up from the bed and stretched her arms out. 

“Good. Then we can start right now if you’re not too tired from your games.”

“It really wasn’t that tough, so I’m ready!”

“Great. Then we’ll start with some laps around the palace.”

Asriel got up and followed Chara out of her room and down the stairs. Their mother was still busy with Frisk’s lessons and their dad was attending to business, so they could count on being uninterrupted.

“It’ll just be running today.” Chara explained as they left the royal household and stepped into the larger palace complex. “Before I make you do anything else, I want to make sure your lungs can handle it.”

“Why is that important?”

“Good lord! Listen to you, Azzy. Why WOULD breathing be important?”

“I mean I know it’s important, but I breathe just fine! I’m doing it right now.”

“You could be doing it better. Not right now, but the main thing that stops people from doing strenuous things is being out of breath. If you can keep breathing even when your muscles ache all over you’ll be able to push yourself further. The more you push yourself, the more you’ll improve.”

Chara stopped when they reached a particularly long hallway. It was usually empty and took Asriel a few minutes to walk from one end to the other. He often wondered what the point of such a long hallway was, especially when it just led to a dead end. 

“How rough are these floors on your feet?” Asked Chara. 

“Not very.” He replied. “Carpet’s better but the floors here are so smooth that I barely notice how hard they are.”

“Good. Then we can use this as a track. I know how far it is from one end to the other, so just do as many as you can.”

“How fast should I go?”

“You're good as long as you’re running. I’ll be right next to you the whole way and, if you’re really slow, I’ll make sure to let you know. ”

Asriel nodded and started jogging down the hall. It felt fine at first, and then Chara urged him to go just a little faster. Within minutes he was huffing and puffing, lungs crying out for him to stop and give them a break. With Chara’s urging, he pressed on through the pain; finally stopping after reaching the end of the hall and making it halfway back. 

Halting was like healing magic over a fresh scrape. His dry mouth and heaving chest made a quick recovery as short pants turned to long, deep breaths. His head felt light, almost dizzy; but a good, euphoric sort of dizzy. 

Chara held a hand to her chin as she walked in small circles around him, appraising his tired form. “Well, about as good as can be expected on your first attempt.” 

“Ha… T-That was… H-Hurt pretty baaaddd…”

“I know. It’s supposed to.”

“B-But how’s that supposed to make me stronger…”

“Azzy, I’ve studied how boss monsters work from top to bottom. I know more about you than even you do. This will help.”

Finally, Asriel was able to stand up straight and face Chara again. “H-Hey… how come you’re not sweating? You don’t even look tired.”

Chara stopped pacing and put a hand to her forehead. “Huh, you’re right. I’m not.”

They both stared silently at each other, until Chara finally shrugged. “Ah well, guess humans are just built for these kinds of things. Good to know.” 

Asriel gave a tired nod of agreement and the two started walking back. As they were approaching the end of the hall they’d started from, the tall figure of their mother appeared from around the corner. 

“Oh! Hello, children!” She called to them, fixing her warm, comforting gaze on the pair. “I was just coming to find you two. Frisk’s lessons are all done and she was wondering where you ran off to.”

To Asriel’s delight, Frisk stepped out from around the same corner. “Hey, you two!” She said as they drew near. 

“Hi Frisk, hi mom.” Chara replied. “I was just starting Asriel up on an exercise routine. He and I had a little talk earlier and we both decided that he could use some more muscle.”

Asriel piped up too, unable to contain his excitement. “Yeah! Chara’s gonna help me get strong!”

Frisk and Toriel looked between Asriel and Chara confusedly. 

“Is that so?” Asked Toriel. “May I ask why?”

Asriel opened his mouth to speak, but Chara interrupted him. “Healthy body, healthy mind. Azzy needs both if he’s going to be king someday and he might as well start now.”

Frisk gave a nod. “That’s sweet of you, Chara. Just don’t break him, okay?”

“It’s no problem, really. I don’t have anything better to do. And don’t worry, he’ll be better than ever by the time I’m done with him.”

Toriel still seemed full of motherly concern, and Asriel could tell he was in for a question or two later. 

“Well, that’s quite good.” She said. “But you mustn't take it too hard, son. You look quite tired. And on the very day I was going to start your magic lessons too...”

“Magic lessons? Golly, mom, didn’t you already teach me healing magic a while ago?”

“I did, and there is more for you to learn in that regard, but today I wanted to teach you something new. But if you’re too tired-”

“I’m not tired, I’m not tired!” Asriel insisted, jumping up and down to prove just how not tired he was. “What are you gonna teach me?”

“That is a surprise, my child. Come with me and you will not need to wait long.”

“In the meantime, Frisk,” Said Chara. “How about we do a few supplemental lessons on… foreign languages. You know the one.”

“Sounds good.” Frisk replied. “Have fun with your lessons, Azzy! We’ll be in the library when you’re done.”

“You too! See you soon!” 

Asriel waved to his siblings as they departed, walking down the hall he had been running in. He followed his mother back to the royal household, and only once he had stepped back inside did it occur to him that Frisk and Chara had been going the wrong way for the library. Chara would figure it out like she did with everything else though, so he decided not to worry. 

His mother brought him to the kitchen. Asriel was just barely tall enough to see the tops of the counters, but he could tell it was immaculately clean as usual. The countertop was white marble with distinct lines of black stone running through its surface in mesmerizing patterns. 

“So what are we doin’, mom?” Asked Asriel, his tail wagging of its own accord. “Are you gonna teach me how to make big, roaring fires? Maybe shoot lightning from my paws? Oh, oh! Or am I gonna learn how to make a big trident like dad does? I wanna do that!”

His mother. “Oh, dear. Asriel! Where did all these frightful ideas come from? You needn’t be doing any of that.”

Her tone made Asriel feel ashamed, but he couldn’t understand why she was so upset. “B-But mom… “ He mumbled. “I’m gonna need to be big and strong and scary someday. I’m gonna be king and I don’t want people to think I’m some kind of baby…”

Toriel smiled and shook her head sadly, crouching to be eye level with Asriel. “Oh, son…” She sighed. “What has made you so concerned about this? Did Chara tell you these things?”

“No! I mean… I just thought of it on my own.”

“I see. Did something happen to make you worried about this, or are these merely errant thoughts born of daydreams?”

  
“Well…” Asriel looked nervously between his mother and the floor. He didn’t want to admit that the other kids were treating him like a baby or that it bothered him. Lying, however, was a sin and if he sinned too much he might not be able to use magic anymore. That would really stink. 

His prolonged silence prompted Toriel to put her hand on his head, rubbing it gently. 

“Son, are you alright? Whatever is bothering you, I promise to listen.” 

Asriel idly swung one of his legs, his gaze fixed on the kitchen tiles. “...and you promise you won’t treat me like a baby?”

“Of… Of course I wouldn’t. You are not a baby anymore, after all. Merely a child. My child. I do not wish to see you so obviously upset. Will you please tell me what is wrong?”

Asriel thought long and hard about that, and in the process further upset himself. “The other kids treat me like a baby!” He growled, glaring up at his mother. “They act like I can’t win any of our games so they just let me! It’s not fun!”

Toriel sighed with relief and pulled him into a surprise hug. “Oh, Asriel. You had me worried that it was something much, much worse.”

“B-But it’s really bad, mom…” Whined Asriel, tears running down his cheeks and onto her robe. It certainly seemed serious enough to him. “I can’t have fun with anyone but my sisters. Th-They’re g-great, but… but s-sometimes when they’re b-busy and you’re busy I feel… lonely…”

“And you think if you were bigger and stronger they would treat you differently?”

“I k-know they would, mooommm….” 

Asriel cursed himself for crying over this. Bawling wasn’t something big and strong people like his dad or Chara did. 

“Do they do this for Frisk too? Or Chara?”

“Y-Yes…” Asriel sniffled. “F-For Frisk. Chara d-doesn’t p-play with other kids… F-Frisk doesn’t m-mind but she i-isn’t the prince either…”

“And if you became big and strong and scary you think they would stop? Would they not simply let you win for a different reason?”

“I-I don’t knowww… All I w-want is to be t-treated like a normal kid! I-Is that too much to ask?”

Toriel hugged him just a little tighter. It was harder for him to breathe, but he barely noticed. He held her as tight as his little arms could manage as she stood up and lifted his weary feet off the cold tile floor. He shut his eyes to try and stop the tears, but only succeeded in slowing them.

“But son, you are not a normal child. You are my child. The Prince of all the Underground. It is simply a fact that people will look at you differently. I am sorry that you feel lonely because of it, but at least you will always have family, right?”

“G-Gerson’s not family… and he n-never lets dad win w-when they play chess…”

“Do you think that is because of how strong your father is?”

“M-Maybe… t-they’re both s-strong so… m-maybe they like c-competing?”

Toriel sighed again, this time tiredly. “It is… like that in a way I guess. They enjoy competing, but not because they see the other as a strong obstacle to overcome. They are good friends who respect each other, and respect is not something you gain just by being big and strong.”

His mother’s words implied to Asriel that Chara had somehow been wrong when she told him that you needed to be strong to be respected. It didn’t sit well with him; Chara was always right, but so was his mother. Who was he supposed to believe?

Asriel felt himself being rocked gently back and forth in his mother’s arms like a baby. Perhaps that wasn’t too far from how he was acting. Maybe he had never really grown up as much as he should have.

He forced his tear-stained eyes open, only to wince at the bright light of the chandelier that lit the kitchen. 

“T-Then how do you g-get respect…?” Asked Asriel, his voice a choked little whimper. 

“By being a person worthy of respect.”

“A-And I’m not?”

“They believe they are respecting you in their own way, my child. They are so young, just like you, and will take a long time to understand what respect means. Do not worry so much about being strong like your father. You will find your own strength someday, even if it is not as… visible as his.”

“A-And what am I s-supposed to do in the meantime…? I-It feels like I d-don’t have any real friends beside my sisters…”

Toriel patted him on the back of the head and stopped rocking him. 

“I wish I could help, son. Your father and I can control many things, but not how others think or feel. Perhaps you should try telling them to stop.”

“I did.” Asriel pouted, his tears finally stopping. “They just said they weren’t letting me and that I was just that good. I could tell they didn’t mean it though.”

“Please understand that they only do it because they do not wish to upset you. That is a sign that they care.”

Asriel was silent as his mother put him back down. He was no longer crying or bleary-eyed, but he was still somewhat upset. He didn’t really believe what Toriel had said about the other kids caring, but he decided to pretend he did and nodded. “I’ll think about it.” He whispered. 

“That is all I ask. If you really wish I could come talk to them with you and-”

“No!” Asriel blurted out. The thought of having to bring his mom to back him up in front of the other kids made him cringe inside. “I-I mean… I’d like to do this myself. I-I’m a big kid, after all…”

Toriel smiled and patted him on the head again. “A big kid who’s going to learn fire magic today.”

That snapped Asriel right out of his bad mood. His tail started wagging again right as he heard her say “fire” and the brightness returned to his eyes. Before he knew it he was hopping up and down on the kitchen floor, begging her to hurry up and teach him. 

“Slow down, my son!” Toriel said with a cheery laugh. “This is a most exciting time, I know, but you must show some patience. Fire is a very, very dangerous thing and haste will get you burned.”

Asriel nodded so fast that his ears shook like maracas. His mother seemed satisfied and turned her attention to the oven. It was a steel box as tall as the counter, and sat in between two sections of it. On the front was a handle that one could use to pull a panel down and allow access to the interior. On top were four little jar-like clay fixtures, each beneath the center hole of an elevated metal grill. 

Toriel got out a pan and placed it on one of the grills.“Well, son, let us start you off with something simple: heating a pan.”

Asriel looked at her, befuddled. “But mom, I thought I was gonna learn fire magic. Not cooking!”

His mother returned the baffled expression with a giggle. “Who says we cannot do both at the same time? After all, what do I use fire magic for most often? How would you like to help me make dinner for your father and your sisters? I’m certain they will appreciate it very much when they get home.”

Asriel thought about that for a moment. He knew it always felt really good to come in from playing games and have a home-cooked meal. It’d be nice to make his sisters and father feel that same kind of happiness too, even if cooking sounded a bit like a chore. “A-All right.” He said. “What are we making?”

“I will make the main course. You will be making the applesauce, my child.”

“Oh boy! I love that stuff!”

Toriel giggled at his enthusiasm again as she began peeling, coring, and chopping up an apple for him. 

“Well that’s because the recipe I will teach you is very similar to what I use for pie filling. I think you will quite enjoy being able to make it yourself.”

She finished with the apple and produced cinnamon, water, butterscotch syrup, and some tangy juice from the cupboards. Then she instructed Asriel in the proper measuring of each ingredient into the pan, adding a stern warning against “taste testing” any ingredients. 

The butterscotch and cinnamon smells blended together to remind him of the lovely pies his mother treated them to. He was drooling by the time all the ingredients were in the pot and whisked together, but they all made it in there instead of his mouth so he and his mother considered it a success. 

“Well done, Asriel!” Cheered Toriel, giving him a brief round of applause. “Now this is the trickiest part. We must get the heat just right, so I shall help you with this flame for a while. Do you recall how you healed scratches?”

“Mhm!” Asriel nodded. “You focus on the ouchie and you kinda… erm… how did you say?”

“Pull from the magic within yourself, channeling it at the hurt and focusing on knitting the flesh back together. Just like sewing. Making a flame is similar, but different. The magic comes from the same place but you must wish it into a different shape and for a different purpose. Tell me, my child, what is the purpose of fire?”

Asriel stared back at his mother with a blank expression. What WAS the purpose of fire anyway? It hurt people, made light, helped make food, but also destroyed buildings sometimes. So many conflicting uses made certain that Asriel couldn’t come to the answer on his own. In the end he decided to just pick one and hope he guessed right.

“Umm… to make food?” He said hopefully.

Toriel nodded solemnly. “That is one of them. Fire has many purposes. It can create or destroy, just like many forms of power. Do not feel as if this is a mere school lesson. I am placing my trust in you, for with fire one may bring happiness or despair in equal measure. Treat it with respect and it shall serve you well, just like a friend.”

This Asriel did understand. Fire was to be his friend; to help him when he needed it and be treated with care. Even with this in mind he still got a little ahead of himself. Focusing on his desire to heat the pan to… whatever four hundred degrees meant, he drew magic into his paw and willed it to make a fire in the kiln beneath the pan. Before Toriel could speak another word there was a little whooshing sound as a brilliant, rainbow colored fire shot out of the top of the clay kiln and began heating the pot. The suddenness of it made Asriel jump and bleat in surprise, clinging to his mother’s robe out of sheer instinct.

“Oh my!” Exclaimed Toriel. “Asriel, was that your fire just now?”

His face was still buried in her robe and he didn’t dare to look for fear that he had broken some part of the oven. “M-Maybe…” he squeaked. 

“There is no need to be frightened. Your fright put out the fire for you, see?”

Asriel released Toriel’s garment and looked at the stovetop. The fire was indeed gone.

“But I must admit,” Continued Toriel. “I did not expect you to be able to create a flame so easily. It does run in the family, so to speak, but that was marvelous for a beginner! The structure and design of the kiln does make it easier to cast magic in it, but that was impressive nonetheless.”

“Th-Thank you.” Stammered Asriel. “S-Sorry for making it so big.”

Toriel laughed merrily and patted his head reassuringly. “No need to be sorry, my child. It is good that creating flame comes so easily to you, but now we must work on sustaining it… and making you less frightened of it. ‘Taming’ it, so to speak.”

Asriel swallowed nervously, but nodded to signal that he was ready to continue. 

His magic lesson lasted for hours, but by the end of it he had learned how to create a very basic fire that stayed in one place and would not move until he dismissed it. The heat was enough to cook with, and the applesauce that night was the subject of many compliments from the Dreemurr family. Asriel couldn’t decide what he was happier with: his cooking or his newfound magical ability. Both were good, and he resolved to continue improving with each. 

He went to bed happy and content that night, his woes from earlier that day forgotten, but not gone from the deeper recesses of his mind. The newfound diversions from that day kept him quite occupied, and the following months were filled with a routine of physical exercise with Chara followed by his mother’s blend of cooking and magic lessons. 

One day, his routine was interrupted early in the morning when he was shaken awake by his younger sister.

“AzzyAzzyAzzyAzzy! Get up!” 

“W-What…?” He groaned, forcing his eyes open and rising up from his comfortable position on his pillow. 

His clock read seven in the morning, and yet Frisk was at his bedside dressed as if she was headed to Snowdin.

“It’s a big day, Azzy! Undyne’s gonna officially become mister Gerson’s apprentice, and we get to watch their first official training session! Dad’s gonna be there too, he was gonna let you sleep in but I want you to come with!”

Asriel shot Frisk a blank stare.

“Buh… w-what now?”

Frisk explained it a second time, and then a third, at which point Asriel had woken up enough to understand. He nodded and assured her he’d be downstairs in a jiffy. Once she left him alone, he crawled out of bed, stumbled over to his dresser, and put on an unobtrusive hoodie and sweatpants for his trip away from the palace. With any luck his modest choice of garb would help him not look so princely as to attract attention. 

He went downstairs and found his father and sisters assembled near the front door that led out into the palace proper. Asgore wore his full royal get-up: a heavy-looking set of steel plate with the Delta Rune emblazoned on the front and a flowing, purple cape that dragged along the ground as he walked. 

“Good morning son!” His father said in a cheery tone that indicated he had already been up for a while. “You should probably grab a bite before we go, it’s a long walk to Snowdin, after all.”

“No need!” Chirped Frisk. “I’ve got some snack bars for the road!” 

Asgore’s brow furrowed. “Frisk, I don’t think those are a substitute for—”

“Pleeeeease, dad? I can’t wait to see what mister Gerson’s taught Undyne!”

“I like snack bars!” Chirped Asriel. “And we could get something at Grillby’s afterwards!”

Asgore shook his head and sighed in resignation, a smile coming over his face. “I suppose if you’re okay with it you may have snack bars for breakfast. Just this one though, and don’t tell your mother.”

Asriel gave a swift nod of understanding and then the group was off. The chocolate bars that Frisk procured were nearly all gone in the first ten minutes, with Asriel saving one to slip to Chara. 

“You looking forward to watching Undyne train too?” He asked as he handed the treat over. 

“I’m…” Chara tapped her chin with one hand while accepting Asriel’s gift with the other. “Interested to see what she’s capable of.”

“She’s so strong that I’m excited too! Remember that time we were playing hide and seek and she broke your bedroom door because you locked yourself inside?”

“How could I forget?” Groaned Chara. 

“I know, right? You told her she had to see you to say that she found you and then she just broke it down with one kick! I bet she’ll eviscerate mister Gerson’s training dummy.”

The rest of the trip was filled with reminiscing about their shared experiences with Undyne, and seemed to pass in no time at all. Soon Asriel was seated in the Snowdin barracks, on the floor of the room where Undyne and Gerson were due to appear later that day. They didn’t have to wait long; the pair in question entered mere minutes after the royals had arrived. 

Gerson was clad in a metal cuirass that covered his chest and legs, leaving the protection of his back to his own natural shell. Undyne, meanwhile, was wearing the same magical armor she created for herself when playing the part of the heroic knight in their games. 

“G’morning, yer highnesses!” Said Gerson, bowing to the assembled royalty. 

Undyne quickly followed suit, though hers was more exaggerated and dramatic. Asgore, Frisk, and Asriel all greeted her with friendly waves. Undyne fought hard to keep her serious face on and gave another respectful bow in return. 

“Ah’m proud to announce that ah officially have an apprentice!” Exclaimed Gerson.

“Seein’ as she recently turned thirteen years of age, the laws of the kingdom allow me t’ begin her trainin’ in earnest. As is tradition, the lass’ll present her natural skillset before the king.”

Gerson continued speaking while Undyne retrieved various training aids from other rooms of the barracks. In the midst of his discourse with Asgore, Asriel leaned over to Frisk and whispered. 

“You didn't tell me she was thirteen now. When’s her birthday anyway?”

“Sorry, Azzy, she doesn’t want me to tell you.”

“But why noooott…?” Whined Asriel, still whispering. 

“She’s a private person and doesn’t want a lot of fuss about her. Kind of like you’re becoming.”

“Awww… But I wanted to make her a big cake…”

At about that time, Gerson finished his speech to Asgore and went to collect a couple other things from elsewhere in the barracks. 

“She doesn’t like to eat a lot of sweet things,” Frisk said. “So you would have been out of luck anyway.”

“Not a regular cake, a seafood cake. I know she likes fish and stuff.”

“Oh, then she’d probably like that. You should tell her and then ask when her birthday is. It’d be rude of me to say.”

“B-But…"

“But what?”

“I.. was hoping you could ask her. She likes to talk to you.”

“You know if you really wanna be her friend, you gotta keep trying. It doesn’t help if I do your talking for you.”

“But she’s scary…”

“Then be brave. She likes brave people.”

Asriel went silent. The advice was useful, but being brave in front of Undyne was easier said than done, especially since she got all standoffish whenever he tried.

Gerson and Undyne had finished setting up, and the old turtle-monster stepped off to the side of the training room next to Asgore while Undyne lined herself up with an archery target. 

“Ah think ye’ll all be impressed with this.” Gerson said, playfully elbowing Asgore. “Go ahead, lass!”

Undyne nodded at the assembled group and turned her attention to the target five meters away from her. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, standing stiff as a statue. All was silent. 

Then her eyes snapped open and a brief, low hum filled the room as a magical spear formed in the air to her right. It shone blue, just like the pools and lakes of Waterfall, and shot forward into the target’s center, a perfect bullseye. 

Asriel’s eyes widened. Aside from his father and Gerson, he didn’t know of anyone else in the Underground who could make weapons out of magic. This must mean that Undyne was really, really, really super duper special. It poured fresh fuel on the fire of the curiosity he had felt towards her ever since the night they first met. 

Frisk’s eyes went wide as well, and she started clapping. Everyone else soon followed suit and even Chara looked impressed. Undyne turned to them with a proud smile and gave a thumbs up. 

“Whaddya think of that, Asgore sir?” She asked, her voice booming throughout the training room. 

“Golly! That’s… very impressive, Undyne! It took me until I was almost an adult to do anything of that sort.”

“She’s well ahead o’ me too.” Gerson said with a smile. “Give ‘er a few more years and she’ll be ready to start leavin’ the mountain with me.”

“To do what?” Asked Asriel.

Gerson and Asgore exchanged an awkward look, as if someone in the room had just said something wrong. 

“Er…” Mumbled Asgore. “You will, uh… understand in time, son.”

Asriel pouted but stayed silent. With an answer like that there wasn’t any point inquiring further. 

“Sir Gerson.” Said Undyne. “Whaddya want me to show them next?”

Gerson’s proud smile returned, and Asriel’s frustrations were quickly forgotten by all present. 

“Get th’ weights out next, lass!”

Undyne did as she was asked, and soon Asriel and company were treated to the sight of her lifting… a very very heavy weight. Asriel wasn’t sure exactly how heavy it was, but when he got up and gave it a try he wasn’t able to get it even a centimeter off the ground. 

Those weren't the only talents she showed off that day, and by the time the session was over, Asriel had a new outlook on his future. He wanted to be strong. Strong like his father, like Gerson, like Chara… and like Undyne.

**Author's Note:**

> All chapters of this fic have been completed. One will be released per week to ensure I have adequate time to polish.
> 
> My deepest and highest thanks to MD. Without them, this prologue and the accompanying sequel would be nowhere near as good. 
> 
> Special thanks to: 
> 
> [Stinkin Thinkin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stinkin_Thinkin) For his many, MANY editing passes over my early drafts and patience as I retooled them again and again. Check out his work (if you are of legal age to do so). Cannot thank him enough for his exemplary editing, 
> 
> [HyperSpeedSpacegote](https://archiveofourown.org/users/hyperspeed_spacegote) for editing and thoughts.  
> Check out his one-shot "Bedtime stories" and be on the lookout for the next entry in that series, coming soon.


End file.
